President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan headed to Qatar on Sunday to attend the inauguration ceremony of the FIFA World Cup 2022 upon the invitation of Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
Communications Director Fahrettin Altun also sent a video message to the "Türkiye-Qatar Nation Branding Panel" in Doha on the margins of the FIFA World Cup 2022.
Türkiye is becoming a brand in the global arena with its "proactive stance" against international crises, the official said on Saturday.
"Türkiye is branding itself today under the leadership of our President (Recep Tayyip Erdoğan), with its proactive stance in the face of global crises and diplomatic, political, humanitarian, military, and economical solutions developed along the axis of its deep-rooted values," Altun said.
The goal is to strengthen the Türkiye brand on the axis of "original, brave and honest" politics, with all the values built on the country's cultural heritage, he added.
"We attach importance to our cooperation with friendly and brotherly Qatar in this field, as we do in all others," the director maintained.
The senior Turkish official also shared that Erdoğan would attend the opening ceremony, which reflects the strength of the Türkiye-Qatar friendship.
As part of the countries' bilateral security cooperation, he added that Ankara deployed over 3,000 police officers and security personnel to conduct a joint security operation with their Qatari counterparts for the World Cup.
Altun said Türkiye and Qatar progress together with the goal of achieving exemplary success while improving their relations in all areas.
"Our trade volume, which has reached approximately $1.8 billion, reveals the point reached by our relations that have developed with the desire for strategic partnership. Qatar's investments in our country have reached the level of $33.2 billion. Similarly, Qatar offers important opportunities for Turkish investors," he noted.
Türkiye and Qatar enhanced relations in the areas of media and journalism as well, Altun said.
"Within the scope of the agreements, we aim to intensify mutual visits of media and communication representatives, to cooperate on mutual media education and activities, and most importantly, to effectively coordinate the fight against disinformation, which is the plague of our time," he added.
Ankara and Doha enjoy strong relations, particularly since the 2017 blockade of the Gulf country by Saudi Arabia and others. The two countries have strengthened military and economic ties in recent years. Annual meetings of “The Supreme Strategic Committee,” established in 2014 as a bilateral mechanism to form the institutional basis of high-level dialogue and cooperation between Türkiye and Qatar, are co-chaired by the countries' leaders.
Turkish-Qatari relations are also witnessing growing and continuous cooperation at various levels, with high coordination on many regional and international issues, including the Libyan crisis and Afghanistan. Besides bilateral trade and diplomatic relations, the two countries played a pivotal role in supporting the legitimate Libyan government and defending Tripoli against putschist Gen. Khalifa Haftar's forces in a 14-month offensive. They also cooperated to reopen Kabul Hamid Karzai International Airport after the Taliban took over following the government's fall in Afghanistan and the withdrawal of U.S. forces. --- Daily Sabah
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